Improvement in street-sprinklers



` Patented'march19,1e72..

L. F. BANCRQFT.

Street Sprinkler.

Q/Ifyeqlm? J my.

Wil-lse a5 SELF AND ANDREW'B. YETTER, OF NEW "YORK, N. Y.

EMPROVEWIENT IN STREET-SPRENKLERS.'

Speciication forming part of Letters Patent No. 124,657, dated March 19,1872.

To all whom 'it may concern:

Be it known that I, Lonnr F. BANcRorr, of the city and county ofWorcester and Oommonwealth `of l\/Iassachusetts,-have invented certainnew and useful Improvements in Street- Sprinklers; and I do herebydeclare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description ofthesame, reference being had to the accompanying drawing which forms Japart of this specification, and in which- Figure l represents a view ofthe front end of the body ortank of a street-sprinkler with myimprovements applied thereto. Fig. 2 represents alongitudinal centralsection of the tank, showing a side view of the valve devices. Fig. 3represents a transverse vertical section of the rear end of the tank,showing a rear view of the valve devices. Fig. 4 represents, on anenlarged scale, a rea-r view of the top 'ends of the footlever and latchdevices 5 and Fig. 5 represents, on an enlarged scale, a plan view ofthe same.

The object of my present invention is to provide a convenient valvemechanism for regulating the Yflow of water in street-sprinklers, whichcan be easily operated by the foot of the driver, thereby leaving hishands free for managing the team. To this end my inven` tion consists inarranging the valve rods through the forward end of the tank, andcombining with said rods a series of foot-levers, as hereinafterexplained; also, in the peculiar devices for connectingk the valves withthe valve-rods; and inthe devices for holding the foot-levers inposition, as hereinafter set forth.

In the drawing, the parts marked Arepresent the tank, body, or reservoirof the spri nkler. B indicates the drivers seat; G, the footboard; and DD D the passages leading respectively to the right side, center, andleft side of the perforated semicircular discharger, which discharger ismade as described in Letters Patent No. 101,700, granted to John A.Bancroft, et al., April 12, 1870; and therefore need not be herein shownand described. The passages D D D are closed by valves E, made of rubberor metal, and having long upwardprojecting spindles, E', which aresupported by upright standards F, fixed to the bottom of the tank A, thevalve-spindle being arranged through the ends of horizontal arms c,which project from the rear sides of said standards. Bell-crank levers Gare provided at their elbows to the tops of the standards F, and to thehorizontal arms of said levers G the top ends of the valvespindles E areattached by means of link-pieces b, while the upright arms of thebell-crank levers G are pivoted to the ends of the valve-rods H, whichlatter extend to the exterior of the tank at its forward end.Stufiing-boxes I are provided where the rods H pass through the head Aof the tank.

These stufling-boxes are made of the form shown, and are screwed intoopenings formed in the head A', until their external ilangerests againstthe outer surface of the head. The packing-nutsJ are screwed into theboxes I from the interior of the tank, and the packing within the boxesI forms water-tight joints and prevents leakage around the rods H, whichlatter, being made smooth, can be easily slid back and forth through theboxes for operating the valves E, and thus opening and closing thepassages D. The forward ends of the rods H are attached, by means oflinks "d, to the foot-levers K, which have their lower ends pivoted instuds f, secured to the lower .part of the head A', lwhile their upperends project up through a slot in the central part of the foot-board Gin the manner illustrated in the drawing. The side levers are turnedinwardI above their junction with the valve-rods, so that all the leverspass through the foot-board in close proximityto each other. The centerlever ,is provided with a cross-head, e, at its upper end, and the sidelevers are turned outward at a level with the cross-head of the centerlever, to form a sufficient space for the foot,

levers are pressed forward to open the valves the latch L catchesontodugs t, formed -on the sides of the central lever, and therebyretains the levers in the position indicated by dotted lines, Fig. 2,thus keeping, the valves E open until the latch is tripped and thelevers released, when the valves willbe instantlyclosed by the action ofthe coiled-wire springs M, which are arranged around the valve-rods H,with one of their ends pressing against the packingnuts j, and theothers against the pins m set through the rods. It will be understoodthat a dii'erent arrangement of springs may be used from that hereinshown, and said springs may be combined with the levers or rods on theexterior of the tank, or in the interior. Veights may also be used forclosing the valves, when desired; but I prefer the construction hereinshown. If the driver desires to shut off the water from one side of thedischarger while passing carriages, or while running near the sidewalk,he releases the lever corresponding to the side he desires to shut byspringing the upper end of said lever outward, so that it will pass bythe end of the cross-head e; and if he desires to shut oft' all thewater, he trips the latch L by pressing down its rear end with his heel.Lugs may be formed on the side levers, to catch onto the latch L in amanner similar to the central lever, if desired; or a separate latch maybe provided for that purpose, so as to hold one of said sideleversindependentof the cen tral lever. In lieu of the spindle-valves EE', as herein shown, a simple clapper-valve may be used in connectionwith the bell-crank levers Gr and valve-rods H. The parts of thecarriage not shown herein may be made in the ordinary manner, and do nottherefore require further description.

It will be observed that with the valve mechanism constructed andarranged as herein shown and described, the driver can with his feetconveniently and easily regulate and control the flow of water whileoccupying his position on the seat B, thus leaving both of his handsfreeffor the management of his team.

Having describedmy improvements in streetsprinklers, what I claimtherein as new and of my invention, and desire to secure by LettersPatent, s-

1. The combination and relative arrangement, with the valves and thefront end of the tank in a street-sprinkler, of the stuflingboxes I,valve-rods H, and foot-levers K, substantially as and for the purposeset forth.

2. The combination,with the tank in a streetsprinkler, of threevalve-rods, the front ends of which extend through proper stuffing orpacking boxes in the front end of the tank, and three foot-levers, aholding mechanism, and closing mechanism, whereby either or both of theside valves can be opened or closed, by the foot of the driver,independent of the center valve, and retained in such position,substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3, The combination, with the valve-rods H, arranged through thestuffing-boxes in the head or front end -of the tank, of the foot-levers K e c, latch device L, and springs M, substantia-lly as and for thepurposes set forth.

4. The combination and relative arrangement, with the passages D andvalve-rods II, of the spindle-valves E E', standards F a, bellcranklevers G, and links b, substantially as shown and described.

LOREY F. BANCROFT.

' Witnesses:

Gans. H. BURLEIGH, A. E. Pinnen.

